


You could have just told me

by Quacks



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Awesome May Parker (Spider-Man), BAMF May Parker (Spider-Man), Bisexual Peter Parker, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gay Harley Keener, I Made Myself Cry, Im probably missing a few tags, Language, M/M, May Parker is the best, Miscommunication, Misunderstandings, Negative Self Talk, Not Beta Read, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is a Mess, Precious Peter Parker, Protective May Parker (Spider-Man), Self Confidence Issues, Self-Hatred, Then again everything makes me cry, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:01:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25028164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quacks/pseuds/Quacks
Summary: “Hey, Harley. It’s Peter. I, um, was just wondering if you’re running late? It’s no big deal if you are, I’ve just been waiting here for an hour, and wasn’t sure if I should wait any longer? I don’t know, maybe you forgot or something. Just, uh, call me back? Or text me. Anyway, I’ll wait a little longer…”Peter waited another 30 minutes for him to show up.Harley never came.
Relationships: Harley Keener/Peter Parker, May Parker (Spider-Man) & Peter Parker, Peter Parker & Avengers Team, Peter Parker & Pepper Potts, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 34
Kudos: 672
Collections: Peter Parker Stories, The Best Harley Keener & (or /) Peter Parker Fics, The Best Irondad/Spiderson Fics, The Best Peter Parker Whump Fics, The Best of the Best MCU Fics





	You could have just told me

**Author's Note:**

> Don't mind me as I take out my feelings on our precious baby spider. 
> 
> Thanks for reading. Enjoy!
> 
> Please leave a comment or kudos! They make me happy :)

“Hey, Harley. It’s Peter. I, um, was just wondering if you’re running late? It’s no big deal if you are, I’ve just been waiting here for an hour, and wasn’t sure if I should wait any longer? I don’t know, maybe you forgot or something. Just, uh, call me back? Or text me. Anyway, I’ll wait a little longer…”

Peter waited another 30 minutes for Harley to show up. 

Harley never came.

Maybe Peter had been wrong when he thought Harley seemed excited for their first date. Everyone said that they’d been skirting around each other for months, both secretly pining after the other. Tony - being the overly dramatic person that he is - had even yelled “finally!” when Peter and Harley told him they were going on a date. 

But he could have been wrong. Everyone could have been wrong. And well, Peter can’t really blame Harley for not showing up. He wouldn’t want to waste his time going on a date with someone he isn’t interested in, so Harley shouldn’t have to either. It’s fine. It’s no big deal. Peter can go back to pretending like he isn’t secretly in love with Harley. 

It’s fine.

Walking home, Peter keeps checking his phone, hoping to see a text from Harley. A pang of disappointment sinks deeper in Peter’s stomach with each look, but he can’t stop himself from checking every couple of minutes. He shouldn’t be surprised when he makes it back to the tower without hearing from Harley. The weight in his chest tightens, though, and Peter has to blink back the wetness from his eyes. 

People always said rejection was hard, but nobody could ever be prepared for the ache that it left behind. It’s like being hit by a truck - and Peter knows what that actually feels like. He’d rather take the real thing over this metaphorical truck anyday. At least physical pain is guaranteed to go away eventually. This pain feels permanent, like it’s digging its way into Peter’s core, taking up residence in his heart, and threatening to never leave. 

He now understands why people want to curl up on the couch and eat ice cream all day. It’s a tempting thought, but Peter can’t do that. Seeing how they are both living with Mr. Stark, if he were to mope around the penthouse all day, Harley would see just how much Peter had fallen for him. It would only make things worse. And Peter really doesn’t think he can handle worse.

The private elevator slows as it approaches the top floor, so Peter stands taller, smoothing out the front of his button down, preparing himself to act like he’s fine. If he can get to his room, then Peter can stay in there for the rest of the night. Nobody will question it. And if they do, then he can claim that he’s just tired. 

When the doors slide open, Peter is greeted by the sight of Tony and Harley laughing at whatever movie is playing on the television. He freezes, watching as Tony playfully pushes Harley’s arm, and Harley responds by sticking his tongue out. Any other time Peter might have smiled while his cheeks flushed a dark pink at just how cute Harley looks. This time, however, Peter has to bite his lip to stop it from trembling. How can someone so perfect, cause so much pain?

Not wanting to be seen, Peter quietly sneaks along the wall toward the bedrooms. With his focus being on Tony and Harley, Peter doesn’t see Pepper walk in the room. 

“Hey Peter!” She says cheerily, making Peter jump. His eyes flash back towards the living room, and his stomach flips when he sees Tony and Harley both looking at him. “You look nice, where did you go?”

“Um,” Peter doesn’t want to tell her about the date while Harley is in the room. Actually, he doesn’t want to tell her or Tony at all. They would just talk to Harley and it would make it more awkward than it already is. If Peter can act like it never happened - like Harley never stood him up - then maybe it won’t be so bad. He glances back toward Harley nervously, mentally cursing himself when tears start to pool in his eyes. “I-I’m just gonna go to my room.” 

Quickly, Peter walks past Pepper, keeping his head down. “Hold up, Pete!” Tony calls after him, but Peter doesn’t stop. He just wants to hide. He wants this day to be over. He wants a do-over so that he never even asks Harley out in the first place. Geez, he’s so stupid. 

Peter hurries in his room, closing the door behind him, but Tony walks in after him. “Kid? Did you hear me? What’s going on? You okay?”

“Oh, sorry Mr. Stark.” Peter answers, trying to sound casual, while his back is turned to Tony. He tugs off his shoes, putting them away in the closet as an excuse to not look at Tony. “I’m fine. I’m just tired. I think I’m gonna go to bed early.” 

“Aw, Harley and I are going to watch another movie and we wanted you to join.” Tony explains, not at all ashamed that he sounded like he was whining. “You sure you don’t want to stay up a little longer?”

Shaking his head, Peter fiddles with one of the web shooters on his desk. “No. I’m okay, Mr. Stark.”

“Okay. Well if you change your mind we’ll be out there.” With that, Tony leaves shutting the door as he does. 

The web shooter in Peter’s hand drops back onto the table when the door clicks, leaving Peter all alone again. It doesn’t make sense. He shouldn’t be upset that Tony left. He pushed him out, told that man that he was fine. But being alone, with no one for him to hold onto, hurts more than it should. Everyone in Peter’s life leaves. They always do, it’s only a matter of time. 

His parents. 

Ben. 

May. 

They all left. 

(Well, technically, May was offered an amazing promotion - her dream job - but it took her to Boston. That’s why Peter’s staying with Tony. The man is practically a father to Peter, so it was an easy choice. It was Peter’s choice too. He could have gone with May, which is why he doesn’t let himself feel like she abandoned him, but sometimes the pain of missing her still finds a way of settling in his chest.) 

Then tonight, with Harley. Tony leaving (his room. He just left his room, damn it! Tony’s not leaving him. Why does Peter have to be like this?) felt like the final piece to the puzzle, the cherry on top, the last straw. 

Emotions that Peter has pushed deep down, never truly dealing with, start to rise back to the surface. Years of self doubt fueled by harsh words from bullies and pitying looks from strangers, drown Peter as he attempts to catch his breath. But he doesn’t let himself break down.

If only Peter could force his mind to forget Harley. Then he’d never be in this situation. His heart would never feel like it was being ripped out of his chest, torn to a million pieces for Peter to put back together. 

How is Peter supposed to go about his days acting like nothing happened? How is he supposed to work in the lab with Harley - where they share the same workbench - and pretend like he isn’t hurting by simply being in the same room as him? How is Peter supposed to get out of bed in the morning knowing that he isn’t good enough for someone to want him? 

Not just any someone, either. Harley. The blonde haired, blue eyed, perfectly sculpted boy with a killer personality, witty comebacks, genius ideas, and a smile that can light up any room. The first time they met, it took Peter less than 30 minutes to be completely infatuated by everything Harley related. Even when Harley accidentally blew up Tony’s lab, Peter couldn’t help but love every second of it. There was just something about the Tennessee native that made Peter want to keep him in his life forever. 

For months, Peter and Harley drew closer, becoming irritatingly inseparable. Irritating for Tony. Peter doesn’t think he’s ever been happier. Things were perfect. So perfectly perfect, that Peter should have known it couldn’t last. Parker Luck is a real thing, and it is a real pain in the ass. Was it too much to ask that maybe, just maybe, Harley would like Peter back? 

Either way, it doesn’t matter. Peter has to be okay. He’s not going to let a boy be the reason he falls apart. Not even if that boy is Harley. 

* * *

  
  


Apparently, it is too much to ask that Peter be given a break after being stood up. 

No matter how many times Peter begged, May (and Tony, even though he denied it when someone asked) wouldn’t let him be homeschooled like Harley. So for 8 hours of the day, Peter was left to face the challenges of high school alone. Well, no. He has Ned. But Ned had to get his tonsils removed, and has missed school for the past week, so currently, Peter is alone. 

It wasn’t so bad before because Peter always had the promise of seeing Harley after school, which made it easier to ignore Flash’s comments and taunts. Now Peter doesn’t know if he’ll be able to stand being around Harley without feeling humiliated. His stomach drops at the thought of talking to Harley. 

With the calming thoughts of Harley being gone, Peter has already been feeling tense throughout the day. Then Flash had to corner him in the hallway between classes. “Sup Parker.” Flash sneered in Peter’s ear as he came up behind him, pushing him against the wall of lockers. “Did you have a good weekend? Do anything fun like, I don’t know, go on a date?” The boy teased. 

Peter feels the blood draining from his face, his eyes wide, and a sense of dread washed over him. Flash knows about the date. How he knows about the date, Peter has no idea. He hadn’t even told Ned about it because he didn’t want to risk jinxing it. And if Flash knows - knows that Peter was stood up - then the bully will no doubt give Peter hell for it. 

“Actually, I don’t know if it counts as a date if the other person doesn’t show up.” Flash said loudly, drawing the attention of several other students. The added attention only eggs Flash on, and Peter wishes more than ever that he could just punch Flash in the nose. “It’s really sad that you thought anybody would actually be interested in you, Penis. How could anyone love a poor orphaned nobody like yourself? No one should ever have to waste their time with you.”

A few people laughed, and only then did Peter realize how big the crowd of people had grown. All these people, all his classmates now know that Peter was stood up. They know how pathetic Peter was for thinking someone could like him. But it’s not really news to them, is it. They all knew this whole time how ugly and unlovable Peter is, and he feels so stupid. 

Stupid for not seeing it sooner. Stupid for falling so hard for someone so far out of his league. Stupid for believing that someone as amazing as Harley could like him. 

Pushing his way past Flash and through the crowd, Peter ran out of the school. The fresh air stung against the moisture in his eyes. He reaches a hand up, feeling the wetness on his cheeks. He wipes away the tears furiously, hating himself for being so weak. He’s a literal superhero; he should be able to deal with rejection. Peter can stop a bus with his bare hands, so why can’t he stop himself from being such a fucking embarrassment? 

Going back into the school isn’t an option. Peter can’t handle anymore judgement or reminders of his stupidity. Not today. Not when the pain is still fresh on his mind.. 

Peter walks away from the school building, his hood pulled up over his head. He thinks about heading to the tower, but someone might be there. He knows Tony and Pepper have a meeting in an hour, so maybe he can sneak in at that time, but then there’s the Avengers who always seem to be around at the most inconvenient times. And also Harley, who could be anywhere. 

If someone sees him at the tower during school hours, they’ll ask questions, and Peter can’t lie to save his life. He really doesn’t want his family to find out about his recent failure. They’ll only look at him with pity, and it will make things more awkward between him and Harley. If he pretends like everything is fine, then maybe - eventually - things will be fine.

For two hours, Peter walked around New York aimlessly. He had thought about putting on his suit, but Tony gets a notification every time Peter puts it on. So he wandered the streets, letting his mind run wild with thoughts about all of his flaws. He never realized how many he had until now. No wonder Harley doesn’t like him.

Building up the courage to actually ask Harley had taken a long time. He’s never had much of a self confidence issue, but with Harley, Peter wants to be just as perfect as the other boy, so he doubts everything he does. Is he talking too much? Laughing too loud? How does his hair look? Should he send multiple short texts or one long text? Does Harley think playing with Legos is childish? Maybe he should stop wearing his science pun t-shirts. Did Peter do something wrong? Is that why Harley didn’t want to go out with him? 

Harley didn’t ever seem to mind the quirky things about Peter. Then again, don’t people just call things “quirks” when it’s something they don’t really like, but they don’t want to be rude and flat out tell the person to stop? Is that what Harley was doing? Was he just putting up with Peter’s weirdness because he’s a nice guy?

When Peter finally makes his way back to the tower, the sun is setting and a light drizzle has started to fall. His stomach has been growling for hours, but the thought of eating anything makes his stomach twist uncomfortably. 

He’s been ignoring the texts from MJ asking why he wasn’t at decathlon practice, and from May asking how his day has been. Happy sent him a text when school got out saying that he’d be late picking him up, but Peter just told the man he’d walk home. Even though he’s grateful for the quiet time he had to himself, Peter kind of thought Tony would have called by now. 

Tony tends to be a mother hen, which can be annoying at times. Except now, with the current lack of concern, Peter wishes Tony would be the helicopter parent that the man tries (and fails) to keep hidden. He could really use someone on his side right now, but he knows it’s not fair to ask Tony to choose between him and Harley. 

Would Tony even choose Peter? Or does he see what Harley sees, and realizes that Peter isn’t worth the effort.

Is that why Peter had just walked through the penthouse to his room without anyone noticing? Tony, Pepper, and Harley were all in the kitchen when he snuck past. Did they see him? Have they even noticed that he’s not there?

* * *

  
  


When the rain decided to make a grand appearance half way through the school day, just a few days after the date night incident, Peter could tell that his day was going to get worse. There wasn’t really anything to queue him in on why things were about to go downhill, it was just a gut feeling. A tight knot in his stomach that refused to leave. For a few minutes, Peter thought that maybe he had reached a new level of hunger, but the familiar ache that has come from him eating less food was still present. 

Peter tried to ignore it. He tried to focus on what his teachers were saying and the assignments they were passing out - more than he thinks he ever has before. Then he walks outside after the final bell rings, to find that the rain had turned to snow. Seeing how he can’t thermoregulate, and the fact that he only has a light jacket with him, makes this less than ideal. 

“Damn it.” He mutters to himself, pulling his jacket from the bottom of his backpack. As he slides the jacket on, Peter looks through the row of cars waiting to pick up students for Happy’s car. Tony always sends Happy to get Peter whenever the weather is bad. It was kind of like an unspoken rule, unless you count the one time Tony actually told Peter to wait for Happy if it’s anything but sunny. 

Other than that, none of them spoke about it. It just happened. So when Peter doesn’t see the sleek black car, he figures that Happy is running late or got caught in traffic. Which is no problem, he’ll just wait….and wait...and wait.

Until an hour passed, and there was absolutely no sign of Happy. Peter tried calling the man, but he was sent to voicemail. He sent a text and received no reply. And just like his date with Harley, Peter was left alone looking like a complete idiot. 

A complete idiot who now has to walk from Midtown to Manhattan in the snow wearing a pathetic excuse for a jacket. An idiot who should have known, with the way things have been going, that he would be forgotten. 

To make matters worse, when Peter finally walks into the penthouse, Happy, Harley, and Tony are all seated by the fireplace, mugs of hot chocolate in one hand while they play a board game, their laughter echoing through the apartment. 

Maybe it’s a coincidence that every time Peter comes home feeling like he’s not wanted, Tony and Harley are doing something fun together - or maybe it’s their subtle way of telling Peter that they don’t want him around. 

* * *

  
  


Peter’s been watching for a week, and he doesn’t know how he missed it before. 

There’s the glances between Tony, Pepper, and Harley, when they think he isn’t paying attention. The way Tony stares at him, squinting his eyes like he’s analyzing everything Peter does. The whispered conversations that immediately stop the moment Peter enters a room. It all seems so obvious now that he’s aware of it. 

So Peter has been trying to pay closer attention to the things that are annoying to the others, and then he fixes it. 

Tony mentioned once that Peter eats more than the rest of them combined, so he stops eating as much. Harley commented on how Peter only wears his graphic tees, so he stops wearing them. Bucky gave him an unamused look when he tried to joke around with him, so he stops joking. Sam said that Peter is always around, so he stays in his room more. 

It’s been said that there is always a bit of truth to the teasing jokes people make. Peter would rather change himself than risk losing more people from his life. Without the Avengers, who else could possibly want him in their lives? So it all comes down to a simple list; a set of rules for him to follow. 

_ 1) Talk less. Nobody cares about what you have to say.  _

_ 2) Don’t be around as much. People need space. Especially from you. _

3) You’re not funny. Stop trying to be. 

4) Eat smaller portions. People shouldn’t have to waste money on you.

5) Be more mature. Legos and science puns are for children. Grow up. 

He lives by these rules, and when he screws up - which he does all the fucking time because he can’t do anything right - Peter sees more and more why nobody likes him. And it makes him feel guilty. Tony and Pepper have been so nice to let Peter stay with them. They shouldn’t have to put up with him.

Nobody should have to put up with him. 

* * *

  
  


“Hey, Peter. I haven’t seen you in a while.” Harley crosses the lab to where Peter is hunched over his web shooters. The way he casually leans against the workbench with his signature crooked smile, makes everything feel so normal. “What are you working on?”

But it’s not normal. Peter feels like he can’t breathe without doing something wrong. He’ll never know  _ when _ he does something wrong, because Harley, Tony, and Pepper are all too nice to tell him. That’s why he starts cleaning up his area, making sure to put everything back in its place. The less time he spends around them, the less opportunities he has to make a mistake.

“It’s nothing.” Peter forces his voice to sound steady, cautious with each syllable so he doesn’t stutter over his words. “I’ll get out of your way.” 

“You don’t have to go.” Harley grabs Peter’s wrist to stop him from putting things away. “If you want to work alone, I can come back later. We just haven’t talked in a while and I wanted to catch up.” 

The look of sincerity in Harley’s eyes made Peter want to believe him. And he really wants to believe him, but the past week has him seeing past the facade. There’s a hint of doubt in Harley’s expression, like he’s already regretting his decision to invite him to stay, and Peter hates that he’s the cause of it.

“No, it’s okay. I was done anyway.” He lies, pulling his arm out of Harley’s grasp.

“Are you okay?” 

Snapping his gaze to look at Harley, Peter is taken aback. Did he hear that correctly? “W-what?”

“You’ve just been quiet lately, and it kind of seems like you’ve been avoiding us. I wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

Technically, Peter has been avoiding Harley. He’s been avoiding everyone. Not because they did anything wrong, but because Peter has. He does everything wrong, and it’s not fair to them to have to put up with his constant screw ups. 

And the problem is, he can’t tell any of them. What would he say? ‘ _ Hey Harley, you know that date you stood me up on? Well since then, I’ve realized how annoying and stupid I am, so I’ve been staying away in hopes that you all will still want me around sometimes.’ _

Shaking his head, Peter forces a smile. “I’ve just been really busy.”

* * *

  
  


Avenger dinner nights are not a common occurrence. While everyone absolutely loves them, it’s hard to find the time when all the busy schedules match up. But when they do happen, it is not something you want to miss. Between all the food, laughter, and fun, there is never a dull moment. With the new additions added to the group, like the Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain Marvel, these dinners really help in building the Avengers Family. 

Mario Kart is a game staple, and Peter has an ongoing rivalry against Clint, Sam, and Bucky. They claim that he’s cheating, but really, Peter’s good at it, they suck at it, and they’re sore losers. Since the last dinner, when Sam “accidentally” knocked Peter’s controller out of his hands, causing him to lose, Peter has been practicing (not that he needs it) and is looking forward to seeing the looks on their faces when he obliterates them. It’s been almost five months since the last dinner, and Peter cannot wait for the next one.

Well, he  _ was _ excited for it, but he didn’t expect to come home after a two-day decathlon competition to find the penthouse living room filled with the people he thought of like family. Peter looks around the room where everyone is chatting and laughing. Sam, Clint, and Bucky are already playing Mario Kart, with Harley taking Peter’s place, while Tony and Steve are finishing up the last few dishes from dinner. 

“I think we can all agree that this has been the best family dinner we have ever had.” Pepper says as she sips on a glass of wine, still sitting around the dining room table with the majority of the other guests. 

Noises of agreement were heard around the room, with someone adding, “There is just something about this one that has been different than the rest.” 

_ Me. _ Peter thinks as he quietly makes his way to his room.  _ I wasn’t here. That’s what’s different. _

Nobody noticed as Peter walked through the living room - carrying a large trophy because their team won - and into his room where he haphazardly threw his stuff onto his bed. The competition was great, except for the part when Flash decided to call out the fact that Peter didn’t have anyone in the audience to support him. But overall, Peter had been able to ignore the bully’s taunts, and actually enjoyed himself. All the warmth and excitement Peter had been feeling drained the instant he stepped off the elevator. 

Peter can’t do this anymore. It’s too hard to act like he’s fine, while trying to change every part of him. He can’t handle being so blatantly rejected anymore. It’s not just Harley, or Tony, or even Happy and Pepper anymore. It’s everyone. None of them really care if he’s there or not. 

In his room, Peter shakily takes out his phone, pulling up the one number that has always guaranteed to bring a smile to his face. 

“Peter?” May answers her phone hastily.

“Hi, Aunt May.” He answers, forcing himself to sound normal.

“How was your competition?”

“It was good. We won.” 

“And how many of the Relay questions did you answer?”

“May!” Peter laughs. His aunt always asks that question after a competition. 

“What?” May giggles. “I know you, Peter Parker. You are the smartest kid on your team. Without you they’d have a harder time winning. So how many of the winning points did you score?”

See, a guaranteed smile. May doesn’t even have to try, she just naturally lifts Peter’s mood whenever he’s around her. “I’m pretty sure the team would do just fine without me.”

“I’m pretty sure you’re dodging my question.” May quips back. 

“Fine.” Peter sighs dramatically. “15” 

“Out of…?”

“15.” He says sheepishly, but still grinning. 

“I knew it!” May cheers. “My kid is a genius!”

Peter and May continue to talk for an hour. She asks him about school and Spider-Man, and he asks her about Boston and how she’s liking her job. Glancing at the clock, Peter realizes that his aunt is going to have to go to work soon. So without thinking, he rushes to ask her the question that’s been on his mind for a few weeks. “WhatifIweretocomelivewithyouinBoston?”

“Say that again, but slower.” May laughs fondly. 

“I, um, was just wondering, what if I moved to Boston with you?” Peter said, instantly regretting asking. May deserves some time to herself. “But, um, y-you know what, j-just forget I asked.” 

“You want to move to Boston?” May asks slowly, like she’s still trying to process Peter’s question. “Why? Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, it’s..it’s fine. I just miss you.” Peter’s not really lying, he does miss his aunt a lot. “But I’ll be fine, May. I’ll get to see you over Thanksgiving and Christmas break, so I’ll be fine.” 

“How about you stop saying that you’re fine, because I can tell that you’re not. Tell me what’s going on.” 

This is exactly why Peter shouldn’t have asked. He doesn’t want to tell May how he’s feeling or about what has happened over the last month. She’ll worry and then she’ll call Tony and it will just become a bigger mess than it already is. “It’s nothing, Aunt May.” Peter says, forcing his voice to sound even. “Just forget I asked.”

“Peter..”

“I actually have to go now.” Peter interrupts. “I have lots of homework to catch up on. I’ll talk to you later. Have a good shift. Love you, bye!” 

Quickly, Peter hangs up, letting his head fall back against the wall with a loud thud. 

* * *

  
  


After taking a long, much needed shower, Peter was planning on going to bed for the night. He’s tired from the competition, and nothing sounds better than sleep. Except food. Food sounds good, but he’s not going to venture to the kitchen when all of the Avengers are still there. Like most of his nights now, Peter will just go to bed hungry. It’s not a big deal. As soon as he’s unconscious the hunger won’t bother him anymore. 

Pausing before putting on a shirt, Peter takes a second to look over himself in the mirror. He’s definitely lost weight. His face is thinner, his abs are a faint outline of what they used to be, and he can almost count each of his ribs. But that’s what happens when you have an enhanced metabolism and you don’t eat nearly enough. To Peter, it’s worth it if it means not being left behind again. 

“Peter?” Harley gasps, standing in the doorway of Peter’s room.

“Shit.” Peter jumps.

“What are you doing to yourself?” Harley asks, eyes wide as he looks over how thin Peter has become. “Are you starving yourself?”

Crossing his arms over his stomach, Peter slowly walks back toward the bathroom. They weren’t supposed to know. They weren’t supposed to know that Peter eating less means practically starving himself. Peter knew that if they found out, they would make him eat more because they’re nice people. Tony, Pepper, and Harley are too generous to let Peter go hungry - even if it means him being an inconvenience to them. 

“Harley? What’s going on? Are you…” Tony freezes next to Harley as he takes in the sight of Peter. His eyes flash up to look at the kids face for a second before flickering back down to his abdomen. 

Peter takes that as his cue to go back into the bathroom. He’s so fucking stupid. He should have been more careful. He should have locked the door; but he won’t make that mistake twice. Making sure to lock the door, Peter grips the porcelain counter top, trying to slow down his breathing. 

“Peter?” Tony calls, pounding on the door, his voice somewhat frantic. “Kid, open the door!”

What hurts more than being left out, or stood up, or ignored, is the fact that they keep pretending to like Peter. When he’s around, they act like he isn’t a thorn in their side. Peter has been holding onto that false reality, using it as the only thing to keep him afloat. He thought he could use the whole ‘fake it ‘till you make it’ saying, but he can’t pretend anymore.

“Come on, Pete. Let me in.” 

And now that Tony and Harley have another thing to worry about, they’ll continue to pretend like they care. They’ll tell Peter comforting things to his face, but behind his back they’ll complain. Knowing the truth hurts, no matter how hard Peter tried to force down the pain.

“Please, Peter.” 

To his face, Tony invites Peter to spend time in the lab, but he turns his back, Tony complains to Pepper about never having alone time in his lab. To his face, Harley will talk with Peter for hours, until he gets tired of Peter and makes up an excuse to leave. To his face, Pepper tries to teach him how to cook, but the second he starts to be annoying, she pushes him out of the kitchen. He’s tired of being torn between what they want him to think, versus what they actually think. 

Slowly Peter unlocks the bathroom door. He walks past a shocked Tony and Harley, grabbing the first shirt he finds, slipping it over his head. “I’m gonna go to Boston.” Peter says as he sits on his bed. 

“What?”

“I just don’t think this is working out. It’s obvious you are all feeling the same way, so the simple solution is for me to move to Boston.” 

“Hold up.” Tony says, standing in front of Peter. “What’s not working out?”

Sighing, Peter resigns himself to having to say it out loud. “This.” He whispers, blinking back tears. “Me being here. I’m just in the way. You clearly don’t need or want me.”

“Peter, what makes you think we don’t need you?” Harley asks. 

“You’ve said it. You all have said it.” Peter wishes they would just cut the act. It’s hard enough as is, they don’t need to keep pretending to be naive. “Just the other day, Tony, you told me to get out of the lab. Then I heard people talking in the kitchen saying that the Avenger’s dinner tonight is the best they’ve ever had because something was different. Me, I’m what’s different. I wasn’t there, so they didn’t have to worry about me screwing things up. And Harley, the date? You could have just told me you weren’t interested instead of standing me up.” 

Tony and Harley’s eyes both grew wide, glancing at each other then back to Peter. “It’s okay.” Peter says quickly. The deer-in-the-headlights look confirms to Peter his suspicions. They’ve been caught. “You don’t have to explain or make up excuses. I get it now. So I’ll get out of your way.” 

“I think you’ve got it all wrong, buddy.” Tony says gently. “Peter, none of those things were because we don’t want you. I made you leave the lab because you looked like you were two seconds from passing out.”

“Please don’t lie to me anymore.” 

“Kid, I’m not lying to you. I can have FRIDAY pull up the video footage if you want me to. You look at that and tell me you didn’t look dead on your feet.” Tony explains, pleading for Peter to believe him. 

“And tonight?” Peter asks, skeptical of Tony’s explanation.

“Tonight was supposed to be a surprise, Pete. You got home earlier than we expected and we didn’t see you come in, but we wanted to congratulate you on winning the competition.”

“How…”

“How did we know you won?” Tony finishes for him. “Since they don’t stream the competitions, I had FRIDAY hack the security cameras. Just because none of us could be there in person doesn’t mean we didn’t want to watch. And then we saw you answer all the Relay questions, so I called everyone and they all agreed to drop what they were doing to celebrate.”

“I..” Peter doesn’t know what to say. They did all this for him? But it doesn’t make sense. For weeks they had been ignoring him and it really seemed like they didn’t want him around anymore. They even fucking forgot about him a few times. “But I saw you washing the dishes.”

“Those were ones left over from lunch and I wanted to get them out of the way.” 

Harley, who had gone completely still and quiet, gasps, “Oh my...fuck. I really thought we hadn’t set an actual day for the date yet, but we did. I forgot about the date. How could I have forgotten about the date? I am such an idiot, Peter. I am so sorry. There is no explanation I could give you that would make this okay.”

“It’s fine, Harley.” Peter shrugs, fiddling with his thumbs. 

“No it’s not!” Harley says, sitting on the bed next to Peter. “Peter, I really really like you. A lot. Probably more than I should, and you probably hate me now - which I don’t blame you for because I would hate me. And…”

“Harley.” Peter cuts him off. “Please tell me you aren’t just saying all of this because you feel bad or want to be nice because I don’t want to get my hopes up again if it isn’t true.”

Leaning in, Harley places a short kiss on Peter's lips. “I’m not just saying it. I really do like you.”

“Maybe save the kissing for when I’m not here.” Tony teases, ruffling Peter’s hair. 

Peter looks at them both with an apprehensive smile. He really wants to believe them, but he can’t shake the doubt lingering in the back of his mind. 

“We really let you down, Peter. There’s a lot that we have to make up to you, and I don’t expect you to forgive us right away. If you still want to go to Boston, I understand, but please don’t go because you think we don’t want you here.” Tony says, sensing Peter’s hesitation. 

“Don’t give him that choice.” Harley argues, exasperated as he hits Tony’s arm. “You’re not leaving.” He tells Peter. “Not when I possibly just got my first boyfriend, if you want?”

Feeling his face blush, Peter ducks his head, smiling. “Yeah. I-I’d like that.” 


End file.
